Study released same month of World Health Organization’s gaming disorder classification

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Up to 23 percent of people who play video games report symptoms of addiction, which can lead to negative effects on health, wellbeing, sleep, academics and socialization.

LOMA LINDA, CA—June 25, 2018—A study by Loma Linda University School of Behavioral Health researchers found that attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) severity is associated with severity of video game addiction.

“This result is consistent with our hypothesis and with prior research, which suggests that people with greater ADHD symptom severity may be at greater risk for developing problematic playing habits,” said Holly E. R. Morrell, PhD, associate professor in at Loma Linda University School of Behavioral Health and the study’s principal investigator.

Morrell said previous research has estimated that up to 23 percent of people who play video games report symptoms of addiction, which can lead to negative effects on health, wellbeing, sleep, academics and socialization.

In the Loma Linda University study, the number of hours playing video games was associated with addiction severity. Age was not a factor. Also, males reported greater addiction severity than females. Morrell and her team tested nearly 3,000 video game players ages 18–57 for the study.

Morrell is an expert in the field of addiction. In May, she published a study in Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, in which she and her co-authors described some of the risks associated with video game addiction, such as physical and mental health problems, as well as problems with social and occupational functioning.

Loma Linda University Health includes Loma Linda University's eight professional schools, Loma Linda University Medical Center's six hospitals and more than 900 faculty physicians located in the Inland Empire of Southern California. Established in 1905, Loma Linda University Health is a global leader in education, research and clinical care. It offers over 100 academic programs and provides quality health care to over 40,000 inpatients and 1.5 million outpatients each year. A Seventh-day Adventist organization, Loma Linda University Health is a faith-based health system with a mission "to continue the teaching and healing ministry of Jesus Christ."